How is the approach to criminal policy changing in Slovakia and the Czech Republic?

Abstract

This article examines recent developments in criminal policy in the Slovak Republic following the adoption of the amendment to the Criminal Code No. 300/2005 Coll., as amended, which enters into force on 6 August 2024. The author focuses on the general concept of criminal policy and provides an analysis of selected provisions of the Slovak Criminal Code and the Czech Criminal Code No. 40/2009 Coll. In this context, the article compares the Slovak amendment with the draft amendment to the Czech Criminal Code submitted by the Ministry of Justice of the Czech Republic. The analysis focuses in particular on the legal regulation of financial penalties, the offence of theft, and the drug offences, with the aim of highlighting key legislative differences and common features between the two legal systems.